


Warehouse Row

by joeschmuckatelli



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Recreational Drug Use
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-11-23
Updated: 2013-01-09
Packaged: 2017-11-19 07:59:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,513
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/570987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/joeschmuckatelli/pseuds/joeschmuckatelli
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>wooo super inspired so posting a second chapter really quickly. Have at it you guys</p>
        </blockquote>





	1. Reminiscing.

There he is.

And there he goes. 

Fuck. 

Sollux leaned back against the side of his beat up Camry, taking another long drag from his preferred flavor of cancer sticks—Pall Malls this month. He was on a tight budget. 

The messy mop of pale, ashy-blond hair bobbed along between two other patrons. One was of dark, rich black hair, swept into a short bob; the other was a mass of tangled, ridiculously out of control dark brown, sticking up in almost every imaginable direction. Sollux’s eyes were trained on the blond however; beneath the fluffy mess of bed head was a very pale neck half covered up by a Superman hoodie. Two arms hung at his sides, hands shoved into the jacket’s pockets, and a pair of dark grey cargo pants clung loosely to his hips. The motley crew of three proceeded onward, eventually reaching the end of the sidewalk and turning the corner. Sollux found himself standing on his tip toes to try and catch a glimpse of his face, but it was too late. A moment later and they were behind the building. 

“Damn.” 

Sollux took another long drag from his cigarette, mentally berating himself. Really? Had he fallen to something as childish as standing in the parking lot in hopes of seeing him? Even for him, that was kind of pathetic, now wasn’t it?

He flicked the cigarette butt to the ground, swiftly stomping it out with his boot. A breeze then kicked up, pushing against his chest and attempting to tug on the edges of his coat. He shivered, hitching up the collar of his trench coat and ducking his head to hide his cold nose behind the woolen fabric; Sollux then paused, letting himself take in the view. 

He stood in the parking lot of the local high school, still leaning against his beat up, dark green Camry. The parking lot itself was somewhat rectangular with a drive branching off that wrapped around the school building; the school itself was about three stories tall, a mixture of tan brick and painted-white cinderblock. The steps leading up to the front door were cement, worn from the hundreds of feet that trampled over them day in and day out. The building stretched out along the street quite a ways, with an adjacent building housing the separate cafeteria, gym, and indoor pool off to its right; behind the school was an extension of the parking lot, as well as a tennis court, soccer field, and a football “stadium” of sorts. But he already knew all of this. He turned his attention back to the stairs with a dry smile. Two years ago he’d walked down those steps as Valedictorian and class president, holding his diploma high in the air with a sense of triumph. He slowly let the memories wash over him, and suddenly, the chill of autumn’s nip was gone. 

“Hey Sir-Lisps-A-Lot!” Sollux whirled on his heel, grin broadening; sure enough, Karkat was headed towards him, all snarky smirks and sauntering stride. Sollux was perched at the top of the steps, and slowly he lowered his hand, diploma clutched in his fist, only for him to half jog forward. Man, these robes made moving around a lot more complicated than need be. 

“So you’re finally getting out of this place.” Karkat said it as more of a statement than a question; he quickly filled the gap between them, pulling him into the most affectionate bro hug he could get away with. Sollux had to restrain himself from picking him up clear off the ground and whirling him around in a circle. 

“Well, out of thith thchool, yeah.” They pulled apart slowly, Sollux letting his hand ruffle Karkat’s ever messy mop of hair. The black was growing out now, and the light blond beneath was beginning to really show. He’d never realized just how light his hair was, really; he supposed he’d just gotten used to the sight of an angry Guatemalan boy with dark hair and abnormally light eyes. 

“What’s that supposed to mean? I thought every Ivy League institution for the criminally intelligent was clamoring for your ass already, between being Valedictorian and having a kind of insane track record for school and shit.” Karkat gave him a questioning look. There was no way he would have turned all of them down; he’d heard he’d been offered a full ride to some places. Sollux shrugged. 

“Yeah, but I’m interethted mothtly in computer thientheth. I can go to jutht about any thchool that theacheth IT and thtill be learning the thame thtuff—no need to be paying forty thouthand a year for it, you know?” Karkat rolled his eyes, arms crossed and expression looking rather miffed. 

“C’mon dude. I’ve heard you whine about wanting to get out of this bumfuck-middle-of-nowhere back country town for years now. There’s no way in hell you’d be turning down a free ride for no reason.” All Sollux did was grin. 

“Well maybe there ith a reathon, but I’m sure ath hell not telling you.” Again he ruffled his hair, this time giving his shoulder a gentle shove. 

“Assclown!” Karkat yelped, stumbling backward. He slugged his shoulder in return, glaring at him despite his grin. The sun was warm, beating down from partial cloud cover and the late spring breeze whispered promises of a long, dry summer. 

A sudden chilled gust pressed against his chest again, and Sollux was swiftly pulled from distant thoughts of warmer times. He sighed. 

Summer couldn’t come soon enough. 

~

Karkat walked arm in arm with Kanaya and Gamzee towards the back of the school. Much to his chagrin, he’d reluctantly agreed to join them in their endeavors with the school’s art club. He wasn’t much of an artist himself—okay, that was a lie, he couldn’t draw for shit and he knew it—but Gamzee had been so insistent he couldn’t bring himself to flat out reject the idea. 

Two weeks into school and he was already losing his precious after-school-time he would usually use to marathon TV dramas and cram in as many Superman and Deadpool comics as he could before the night was out; now, he was being forced to consider how yellow and blue looked next to each other and think about their “relationship”. He was still wondering why he hadn’t just gone and guzzled the lead paint yet. 

Kanaya tugged on one of his arms, wrapping her delicate, creamy tan fingers around the blue fabric of his sleeve. 

“There’s no need to give off such an intimidating aura, Karkat. It’s not as though this is the end of the world or anything.” She paused to chuckle, covering her hand with her mouth in a dainty manner. “But I suppose if you’re attempting to maintain your reputation with the freshmen, I can understand your continuous scowling.”

“The fuck do you mean by reputation?” He snapped, keeping himself from downright sneering. It was cold, late, and after school. Why the hell would he want to be sticking around? That seemed reason enough to be in a bitter mood. 

“About a third of them think you are some sort of Satanist,” she replied in a rather conversational tone. “And half of that third are convinced you are responsible for the disappearance of that Matthew boy—you know, the one who moved to Michigan,” Again she chuckled. “But, considering the way you glare at them in the halls, it’s really no surprise they would jump to the conclusion that you’re some sort of murderer.” 

“Tch. The fuck is wrong with these gossip-obsessed harpies?” He rolled his eyes and heaved a heavy sigh, pale cloud of steam rising above his head and being whisked away by the autumn breeze. “But if that means they’ll get the fuck out of my way when I’m headed to Physics, hell, I won’t complain,” he mutters, more to himself than his companions. 

The three of them arrived outside the club room, huddled together—Karkat used the excuse that it was too cold to not remain in close quarters and share body heat—and began what would undoubtedly be an excessively long wait for Mrs. Thompson to arrive. 

“C’mon man, there’s no need to be all up an intimidatin’ the little guys that are all runnin’ around our ankles and shit.” Gamzee laughed, a loud, honking sound that reverberated from his chest and filled the air around. It was obnoxious, but Karkat didn’t have the gall to call him out on it. Or maybe he’d just gotten used to it, he really wasn’t sure. 

“I think you’re the only one who sees them as knee high, Gamzee,” Karkat scoffed. “You probably look like a giraffe to them, Mr. Six-foot-five.” 

“They’re still all kinds of mother fuckin’ adorable.” Another scoff from Karkat. 

“To you maybe… Oh, hey Mrs. Thompson.” Karkat straightened, pulling himself out of Kanaya’s grasp. The two on either side of him presented their own versions of polite smiles—Kanaya’s small and coy, Gamzee’s lazy and laid back—as they parted to let the teacher unlock the door. 

Gamzee strode inside first, followed by Kanaya. Karkat turned his head towards the sky, studying the wash of grey and white that made up the cloudy ceiling above; the breeze began to stir, kicking up a small whirlwind of leaves on the side walk. He sighed. Summer couldn’t come soon enough. 

~

‘KK. KK iim liike’

Karkat stared hard at his phone. What the fuck was Sollux trying to tell him? He had a bad reputation of sending cryptic messages, but this one was sort of taking the cake. Another buzz hit his phone before he could respond, and he opened the text reluctantly. 

‘2orrry hehe but liikr okay iim at GZ2 party and fuck iiiim 2lo2he haha’

It took most of Karkat’s self restraint to keep from throwing his phone across the room and leaving it at that. 

‘WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU TELLING ME THIS.’ Click. Send. He snapped his phone shut, shoving it back in his pocket. The dude was cool and all, but Karkat was beginning to grow sick of these drunken texts he’d get at one in the morning. 

Karkat flopped down on his bed and fished around in his blankets for his DS; might as well work on crushing the elite four with his carefully hand-picked team. It took him forever to get his Kingler to level 69, and he’d put a lot of effort into getting his Feraligator to an acceptable level of 58. Now he just had to manage to hold out against that egotistical dragon-master whatever Lance and he could—

Karkat was jolted from his thoughts as his phone buzzed again. He grumbled; shoving a hand in his pocket, he removed the offending device, flipping it back open. 

’2oo iim goiin two head homee and iif you dony hear form me call the cop2 or 2me 2hiit’

Karkat frowned, sitting up. 

‘DUDE, YOURE SOUNDING PRETTY FUCKED UP. DONT GO ANYWHERE, JUST… STAY THERE. GAMZEE WONT MIND YOU STAYING THE NIGHT.’ He hesitated to cast his phone aside this time, concern marking his brow. The DS called to him however, whispering promises of earning his place in the Hall of Fame, and who was he to turn down such an opportunity? Not a minute had passed before he was completely engrossed in kicking Dragon-Master-of-All-Assbutts-Lance. 

~

Everything was spinning. A flash of bright white blurred his vision for a moment, and he doubled over, clutching his head; it passed as quickly as it came, however, and he quickly right himself. 

Sollux groped blindly against the dash until his hand rediscovered the key in the ignition. Four tries later he’d started the car, and, with a snort, he jammed the gear shift into reverse, inching back out of the driveway. Once he reached the road he jerkily yanked the gear shift back into drive, leaden foot weighing down the pedal until he reached a fairly manageable speed of about thirty five. Then forty. Then forty five. 

He vaguely recalled reading a text from Karkat--what did it say anyways? Something about Gamzee… Whatever. He could make it back to his shitty apartment, no worries. 

He squinted into the night as he drove, swerving back and forth while doing his best to stay within the lines of the lane; at one point an oncoming car blared its horn at him, and he jerked the steering wheel to the right, barely dodging the truck as it flew past. Once set back on a steady path, he retched, bile burning his throat; summoning the last of his self control he swallowed it down, refusing to allow himself to throw up all over the steering wheel. 

He didn’t have time to react. 

One minute he was on the road, the next he was flying, pitched into the air by the ditch on the edge of the road. 

The screech of metal being ripped apart rang out through the night. The thick smell of gasoline exploded into the night air, mingling with the musky scent of burning rubber. Metal twisted, crunched, tore. Lights flickered and extinguished. Glass split into brilliant spider webs, separating into small fragments of glittering ice and hurtling through the air at lethal speeds. A skull collided with the steering wheel, brilliant scarlet arcing through the air in a series of small, punctuated droplets. They sprayed against the dash, his lap, the windshield, spattering the crystalline pathways that split the clear barrier. 

“… Ngh…”

His phone buzzed in his pocket, unseen and unread message urging a warning. 

‘IM SERIOUS DUDE, DONT DO ANYTHING STUPID.’


	2. An Eye for a Piece of His Mind

“Whoa whoa, calm down Feferi.. Speak, uh. English. Please.” The girl was blubbering something in French, the sound of her sobs choking out half of the syllables. Even if he had the slightest idea what she was saying, it wouldn’t have made much sense anyways. 

“S-Sollux was.. And now ‘e’s… Putain, je ne peux pas croire Sollux…!” she warbled. 

Shit. Sollux? Karkat’s knuckles went white as he clutched the phone close to his ear, a panic-sparked dread beginning to settle in his stomach. 

“What the holy mother of hell fuck are you saying about Sollux?” he demanded, doing his best to keep the panic from his voice; he wasn’t doing a very good job. 

“ ‘E’s in the ‘ospital, they said it was some sort of terrible accident, Karkat... Je ne sais pas quoi faire!” she wailed. 

His stomach dropped to his ankles. 

“… Where. Which-- fuck, which hospital is he in?” His voice was strained, the flood of terror weakening his words. 

“East Belleview… What should I do? I tried to call Eridan, but, putain, ce connard ne serait pas ramasser!” Karkat jerked the phone away from his ear, the shrillness of her voice suddenly jolting him from his panicked state. 

“Just-- wait there or something. I’ll be there soon.” He didn’t wait for a response before snapping his phone shut. 

Karkat stood there for a moment in his bedroom, eyes trained on the small, red and black device responsible for informing him of the worst news he’d heard in years. A trembling took over his limbs; soon he was shaking with unbidden rage. 

“Fucking… God damned IDIOT!” he shrieked, launching the phone at the opposite wall; a sizeable hole appeared where dry wall and paint once were, small cloud of dust sinking to the floor after the phone skitters across the hardwood. 

Hot, wet streaks marked his cheeks. What did he tell him? Overcome with panic, thoughts jumping to worst case scenarios--what if he was in some sort of coma, or lost a limb, or was brain damaged--he found himself still shaking. What did he tell him? Sollux Isaac Captor could very well be on the verge of death because the idiot didn’t stay put like he told him to. What did he tell him? Hands twisted in pale blond locks, fingernails digging into his scalp. What did he fucking tell him?

A trembling form sank to the floor, sobs threatening to wrack his frame down to his very core. A choked noise came from his throat, the numbness of shock seeping out of his limbs as the panic took complete hold of him; all he could imagine was Sollux’s body, mangled and twisted, with only a sliver of a chance of survival. Another round of silent sobs took him by surprise and dragged him even lower as he curled in on himself on the floor. 

What now? 

The panic of the moment stirred in his gut again, and he lurched upright, wide eyed. He had to go visit him. He had to go and find that asshole so he could bet the living shit out of him for being such a fucking idiot. In renewed rage he scrubbed the tears from his eyes and stood; with a huff and small sniffle, he set about getting ready to leave.

Everything was shrouded in a hazy, dreamy sense. Everything felt so incredibly surreal, he was beginning to wonder if it really was a nightmare-- that by the time he woke up in the morning he’d have a text from Sollux, telling him about some stupid game he downloaded and how he hacked into it like a pro, or that he’d cracked the code to someone’s email and spammed mass emails to all of their contacts. That it would be the usual shit that dunce was up to, and none of… this. 

Karkat drifted from his room to the living room, picking up his keys off the counter as he went. He was nearly out the door when a notion struck him; he turned on his heel and drifted back upstairs, blindly searching for his phone. After locating the offending device, he fumbled his way down stairs and out the front door; he clambered into his car, settled in his seat, and briskly buckled his seat belt. 

“… Fuck.” For the longest time he did nothing except sit and stare at the steering wheel. The gravity of the situation bore straight through his chest, leaving a heavy, gaping wound. Sollux could be in any kind of condition he reminded himself; for all he knew, the dick-weed could be sitting in the emergency room laughing at himself, preparing to sign his release papers. That lessened the pain, even if only by a marginal amount. But what if he-- Karkat groaned and let himself fall forward, head thudding against the steering wheel. 

The drive to the hospital was little more than a bleary haze. Off and on his phone would start, ringing and buzzing and creating all manner of ruckus. He ignored it. 

The deep navy sky was beginning to give way to a tinge of slate and pewter. Streaks of pallor touched the night with warning of the soon coming dawn. 

~

“Captor-- S-Sollux Captor. What room is he-- is he in a room? Jesus H. Christ on a mailbox, I don’t fucking know…” Karkat went from ringing his hands to slapping his palms on the counter. “Just-- where is he? How is he?” 

“Captor, you said? And how do you spell that?” The female nurse behind the counter asked, a rather uninterested expression crossing her face. Karkat resisted the urge to punch her square between the eyes. 

“See-ay-pee-tee-oh-arh,” he growled. 

Feferi stood behind him with fresh tears still in her eyes, hands clasped tight in front of her chest; she was on the verge of another emotional break, that much was obvious, but she was doing her best to keep herself together.

“And what is your relation to Mr. Captor?” she inquired, scrolling through the files before double clicking one in particular. 

“I’m his long lost Guatemalan son that lived in Siberia for twelve years before learning my father was a dick-sucking computer geek living in Chicago. What does it fucking matter?” he snapped, a flare of anger sparking in his eyes. “Just tell me where he is so I can go b… make sure the idiot is-- okay,” he forced out. The woman quirked an eyebrow, but decided asking any further questions wouldn’t get her very far. 

“Captor, Sollux, yes?”

“Ugh. Yes.”

“Admitted through the Emergency Room at 1:34... He was cleared for surgery at 2:16--”

“Surgery? What the fuck do you mea--”

She cut him off, “-- And was released from the OR and admitted to room 413 in the Recovery Ward--”

Karkat peeled away from the counter and was darting toward the elevator before she could finish her sentence. 

~

“Oh.” 

Small, wispy tufts of mocha sprouted out from between cream colored bandages. His skin appeared thin, frail, almost like rice paper; a sickly pallor was in his cheeks, his limbs. The way he was poised, arms upturned and atop the blanket on account of numerous wires and tubes connected to and puncturing his skin, made him appear far more vulnerable than he should. One of the various wires protruding from his person led to a heart monitor; the soft beeping in the background kept a heavy silence at bay, but the atmosphere was still so thick he found he could hardly breathe. 

Off white bandages wrapped around his head; his left eye was buried beneath layer after layer of gauze and tape. A faint brown splotch was visible beneath the top most layer of cloth, rather obviously the colour of dried blood. Moving away from his eye, innumerable small cuts and lacerations marked up his skin and left a trail of crimson nicks that spread out from the wound. 

“Oh, God.” 

Karkat slumped to the floor beside his hospital bed, trembling--no, shaking at the sight of Sollux’s pitiful figure laid out before him. Fists found the thin blanket cast on top of him, balling up the fabric and pressing his face into it. 

“What the fuck,” he whispered. “What did I fucking tell you? Stay put Captor, Gamzee won’t mind Captor, don’t do anything stupid Captor. I don’t think I fucking said go and get your face shredded like a piece of swiss fucking cheese, Captor. I don’t remember saying, ‘Oh, hey, its okay that you’re drunk of your twiggy little ass, just go ahead and go for a drive anyways because what could possibly go wrong?’ You festering skeeze bag cum chugging piss ant, I don’t even fucking know what I’m saying any more because, hah, wow, you’ve got me that fucking pissed. Congratulations, Captor! The fuck do you want, a fucking trophy? A plaque that reads ‘Number One Ass Licker of the God Damned Millennium’? Good job at making it to the top of my shit list. Open your eyes so I can fucking beat the shit out of you already. God damn it Sollux wake up already…” The fierce gusto that propelled his words fell away, his words becoming little more than tattered remnants of a powerful, blazing storm of emotion. A choked sob punctuated his spiel as it came to a close. 

“Fuck you. Wake up. Wake up…” he half wailed, voice straining under the emotional overflow that berated his thoughts, his heart. 

“Wake up. Please.”

~

Blink. Once. Twice. 

An orb of emerald and jade stared up at the ceiling without actually seeing much of anything. 

Blink. Once. Twice. 

Everything hurt. Nothing was in focus. His legs felt heavy and leaden. His arms felt weak and stiff. 

Blink. Once. Twice.

“Oh.”

It slowly occurred to Sollux that he couldn’t see out of his left eye. For that matter, it felt as though there was some sort of covering over his eye, inhibiting his vision. He shifted one arm, than the other, wincing; it felt as though some thing or some things were tugging at the crook of his arm, the back of his hand, and his finger. It was pretty damn uncomfortable. 

“Sollux?” he heard; the voice was breathy, weary. 

Suddenly something to his right shifted, followed by a heavy weight on his chest. 

“Mon Dieu, Sollux, Dieu merci tu vas bien…!” Feferi wailed, tangled mess of wind blown hair obscuring his view of her. 

“Oof.. Uh. Hey.. FF?” he rasps. Damn, his throat felt sore. How much had he been drinking. “What’th going…” 

Wait. 

There was a semi-sheer curtain behind her, cream coloured with a border of somewhat painful pastels. The window to his right had drawn curtains, but the oranges and pinks of an early dusk were peeking through the thin cotton. The walls were a pale cream, terrible pastel borders lining the trim that matched the curtain drawn around him. A row of fluorescents illuminated the small space; the remaining ceiling tiles were made of the cheap, cardboard-like material. His eyes traveled from the ceiling to the window, window to the wall, wall to the cluster of machines that were crowded beside him. 

Hospital. He was in the hospital. 

“Vous étiez dans une épave et ... Oh, désolé, English, right…” Feferi sniffled and lifted her head with some difficulty, wiping tears from her puffy red eyes. “You were in a wreck, Sollux, and they said you were all beat up and when we got ‘ere, your eye…” He winced. He got the feeling she didn’t need to finish the sentence; he knew there was a reason for the bandage over his eye.

“That’th, uh… wow. A lot.” At that moment he realized there was a warmth occupying his left hand, and he flexed it nervously; he received a grunt and shifting of some unseen being in response. 

“Quit fuckin’… movin’ around and shit, God damn I’m trying to shleep you fuckinngh.. Mnh an’ shit hngh…” Sollux quirked an eyebrow, unable to see just who it was; he had a hunch though. His eye flickered to Feferi, look questioning. 

“KK?” he whispered. She smiled and nodded. 

“ ‘E ‘asn’t left your side since we got ‘ere this morning…” Sollux laughed once, a shallow, humorless sound. 

“I shaid to fuckin’ shut up, the hell is wrong with youmnh….” Karkat growled, burying his face deeper into the thin blanket. Sollux moved the hand closest to Karkat’s head until it was free, then gently ran his fingers through his hair. 

“Thorry KK, didn’t mean to be thuch an inconvenienthe.” He chuckled and sighed softly, carding his fingers through his hair over and over. 

“Fucking hell why won’t you shut up. Is asking for some peace and fucking quiet that much? Sollux, if I hear another damn word out of your lispy ass I swear I’ll… Mierda, pendejo, no tienes que decir nada…!” Karkat wailed. 

“Good to thee you too, KK…” Sollux whispered. His strength was already beginning to leave him, fatigue consuming what little awareness he had; he felt the jerk of Karkat sitting up beside him. 

“Fuck you.” Karkat squeezed his arm as he sat up, coming into Sollux’s limited line of sight. Sollux gave him a smirk in return. 

“Yeah yeah. Later, when I’m out of here, kay?” Karkat laughed once despite himself. 

“Shut up, you idiot.”

“Kay. Can do.” 

Sleep was a welcoming comfort to his tired body, and the relaxation of slumber quickly claimed his exhausted mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wooo super inspired so posting a second chapter really quickly. Have at it you guys


	3. Tacos and Tales

There was something that shifted to his left. He stirred. An oddly placed warmth was in the palm of his left hand, though the rest of his body was cold; he had grown accustomed to the fact that the hospital staff often kept the rooms colder than comfortable. 

Sollux sat up half way, propped up on one elbow, doing his best to swallow down the dizziness that often came with waking from an uneasy sleep. Same old hospital bed, same old gown, same old ridiculously thin blanket that did no good in protecting him from the ruthless air conditioning. He snatched his glasses off the bedside table of sorts and slipped them on, blinking away the haze of slumber. 

A rather unkempt tuft of ashen blond was resting just beside his hand, face turned away from him. The mop of pale, cream coloured fluff gave way to equally pale skin, that of which was quickly swallowed up by black cotton fabric. A shoulder jutted out; visually following the length of his sleeve, Sollux was surprised when he discovered at the end of his sleeve, Karkat’s hand was resting gently in Sollux’s own. 

“Oh.” Well then. 

Gingerly, Sollux removed his hand from Karkat’s, doing his best not to disturb him; Karkat grunted once, drawing his now cold and empty hand close before delving back into deep slumber. 

Sollux glanced up to find two other figures occupied the room. Both were in chairs at the end of his bed, and both were turned to face him. One, however, had a somewhat sympathetic expression on their face, appearing rather glad to see him return to consciousness; the other looked like they wanted to murder him. 

“Sol.”

“Oh, fuck.”

Kanaya shot him a warning glance as he rose, nodding her head towards the sleeping Karkat at Sollux’s side. If Eridan cared, he certainly didn’t show it.

“Hey ED.” Sollux whispered, offering him a weak half smile. 

The tall, somewhat slender man strode forward, scarf around his neck doing a rather over dramatic flip as he walked towards the bed-ridden man. Eridan was clad in a simple grey and purple striped sweater which half concealed a dark grey shirt beneath, a pair of black skinny jeans, and his favorite pair of navy Toms. His fists were clenched at his sides. Shit. 

An open palm connected with his cheek before he could do anything to block the blow; Sollux’s head snapped to the side, skin stinging. Instinctively his hand flew to his cheek, cringing. 

“Don’t you ev-ver do somethin’ that fuckin’ stupid again, or so help me I’ll be the one puttin’ you in the hospital.” Eridan’s voice was menacing, dripping with barely subdued malice; Sollux had never heard him sound so serious before. “Because if I ev-ver hear you got yours-self..” His voice crocked, harsh sob breaking through; he blinked once, then twice, as crystal drops threatened to spill over. On the other side of the bed, Karkat began to stir. 

“What the hell are you doing at this ungodly hour…” he grumbles, sitting up to rub his eyes.

“So h-help m-m-me, I’ll fuckin’…” Eridan’s eyes blazed with fury and hurt, as though Sollux had personally stabbed him in the back. 

“Dude, chill, it’th not that big of a deamnmnph—“

Eridan’s hand flew forward again, this time snagging the front of his shirt. Suddenly, Sollux found his lips caught in a harsh, forceful kiss. 

“Whoa whoa whoa what the fuck are you—the fuck is he—“ Karkat babbled, reeling backwards. Eridan’s hand shoved on his chest and Sollux collapsed back on the mattress with a soft ‘whump’; dazed and more than a little confused, he cradled his throbbing head, taking care to avoid the bandages. The last he saw of Eridan was a steely glare, before the man took flight for the door, vanishing down the hall in a matter of second. 

“—the hell did he do that for? You’d think he could see the bandages on your head clearly enough to know not to fucking throw you around like a pillow at a girl’s slumber party, Jesus Christ…” Karkat was more rambling to himself than anything as he scooted forward, kneeling beside the bed, and began to fuss over the older man. “You okay? Do you need me to call the nurse for painkillers or whatever? I mean, if you’re in pain, not for a high you dumb fuck because I know how you…” He blanked. “… Are you two a thing?”

Sollux snapped from his daze, a look of terror marking his expression for a brief moment as he leaned forward. “No. Hell n—fuck no we aren’t! I don’t know where the hell that came from, he jutht… What the fuck.” Sollux slowly sank back into the mattress, horror transforming into sheer confusion. 

“I do believe that Ampora has some sort of infatuation with you,” Kanaya chimed in. Both heads turned to look at her, flabbergasted. 

“Seriously? Fish stick has a think for twiggy over here?” Karkat jabbed a finger in Sollux’s direction.

“Hey.” Sollux shot him a glare that went unseen. 

“When he arrived, which was quite some time ago, he was something of a blubbering mess, all in tears and panicked and whatnot. I offered him the reassurances that you were fairly alright, based on the discussion I’d had with Karkat prior, but he was convinced you were in a coma.” She rolled her eyes in a rather over dramatic manner, gesticulating absently at the empty air. “I told him to stop being such a whiny little drama queen. But, well. You know how any Ampora is.” She could not help but smile, as though it was some sort of a secret joke that only she was aware of. “Then he began to ramble about you being an imbecile and how you needed a caretaker nigh twenty four seven, on account of pulling stupid stunts such as these…”

“And where’s the point in all of this?” Karkat muttered. The glare he received in return was near scathing. 

“… Until he came to the conclusion that he was going to beat you upside the head for the stunt you had pulled. All of which, might I add, he announced to thin air without realizing I was in the room.” Again, she laughed. “Afterward he broke down sobbing, proclaiming an undying love of some sort. At least, until I cleared my throat and he was made aware of the fact that he’s probably the biggest idiot on the face of our planet.” Kanaya crossed her legs, summoning a rather haughty air of triumph about her as though she had conquered some sort of quest; Sollux and Karkat exchanged glances. 

“… So fish stick has a thing for twiggy. Got it.” Kanaya huffed, attempting to appear offended.

“What’s the point of exchanging information if you don’t enjoy the story that comes along with it?” 

Karkat snorted. 

“I’m not a gossip whore like you and Ampora—“ he caught himself just before she gave him the death glare, “—not to say you two are anything alike, way on other ends of the spectrum you know. Like, sexy classy vampire chick versus obnoxious French hipster that smells like cheap cologne and the tide pool he probably broods in. Way different.” 

“Mhm.” 

“Tho before you two thtart outright macking on each other…” Sollux chuckled, scratching the back of his head. Suddenly both pairs of eyes were upon him. “Ith there anything to eat? I’m thtarved.”

~

“Thith ith the betht taco thupreme of my life’” Sollux stated rather matter of factly. 

“Shut up, don’t eat with your mouth full,” Karkat muttered past a bite of burrito; Sollux scoffed. 

“Look who’th talking.” The two exchanged short glares before Sollux turned to Kanaya. “Thank’th for going and getting food by the way, GA… But, uh, do you know what happened to FF? She leave or thomething?” 

Karkat’s vicious attack on his burrito suddenly slowed; he paused to take each bite, chewing slowly as his eyes fixated on Sollux’s face. 

Kanaya cleared her throat and set down her fork, salad balanced precariously on her knee. 

“She left quite a few hours ago, about when visitation was declared over. Karkat, of course, pitched a royal tantrum until the nurse conceded to allowing him to stay.” Karkat huffed in triumph.  
“Damn shtraight she wash gonna let me shtay,” he muttered.

“Oh, I thee.” Sollux blinked a couple of times, empty stare settling to fix on his half eaten taco that rested in his hands; his head dropped back on the pillow and he stared at the ceiling, arms going limp and depositing the taco on its wrapper in his lap. Karkat quirked an eyebrow.

“What’s up?” 

“I dunno, jutht, I gueth…” Sollux made a face. “It thtill feelth really fucking thurreal, I gueth ith the issue. I can’t wrap my head around the fact that… fuck.” He gestured loosely towards his eye, floundering for words. Karkat was quick to set aside his meal and scoot over closer to the man. “I mean, I doubt my car made it out alive, my eye ith fucked up, I probably won’t be allowed to drive for a while… Shit, I probably have a DUI on my record now, too.” He grimaced, resting the butt of his palm on his forehead. “And nothing feelth right. Everything’th thore and thluggish and… and jutht shit,” his voice dropping a notch with each soft spoken word. 

“But you’re alive.” Karkat placed an arm on Sollux’s own; Sollux about jumped out of his skin. “You’re a dumbass, and there’s probably a list of people waiting to beat your ass to China and back, but you’re alive.” He shrugs, doing his best to be reassuring on the matter; he always felt like he did an inadequate job when it came to comforting people about stuff. “And it better fucking stay that way, or I will personally hunt down your ghost and strangle you into double death, if that’s even some shit that can happen.” While his voice carried its usual harsh bite and bitter tone, his eyes were softer, more compassionate. Karkat offered the ailing man a small smile; Sollux couldn’t stop himself from smiling in return. 

“Yeah. Gueth tho… But you know, I kinda wish I coul—“

“Mr. Captor?” A male nurse stood in the door way, clipboard in one hand, other knocking lightly on the ajar door; he waltzed into the room without waiting for a response. “Ah, good to see you awake. And eating!” he exclaimed, falsified smile nearly sickeningly fake. “I need a moment to discuss your current status and what you’ll want to be doing next…” His brown eyes flickered between Karkat and Kanaya. “Do you mind if you give us a minute?”

Karkat stared him down a long, hard moment. He wanted to make sure his mental “fuck you fuck you fuck you”s were getting across.

Eventually, he begrudgingly stood, snatching his burrito and making his way into the hall. Kanaya followed him quietly, giving the nurse a wary glance before closing the door. 

~

“So what did mister ‘I’m a nurse and therefore a-shit-ton-holier-than-thou’ want from you?” Karkat demanded the moment the brunet had left their presence. Sollux turned his head, wide eyed and a little pale. Shit. That couldn’t be good. 

Kanaya edged in behind Karkat, opting to resume her place in the chair towards the end of Sollux’s bed. 

“Jutht, ah… Went over medical thtuff, you know.” Sollux cleared his throat. “Insurance, what I should do next, what my concussion meanth and shit like that.” He shrugged. 

“Then why do you look like he just crushed your kitten with his favorite pair of gogo boots,” Kanaya demands. It’s more of a statement than a question, really. Sollux swallowed, hard.

“He thaid that my eye ith.. I may never be able to thee out of my eye again.” He laughed once, twice, both chuckles little more than weak exhales of air. “Thome thtuff about retine damage and eye thith, blind that… Fuck.” He turned to look up at Karkat; the younger man felt his heart drop to his ankles. Never before had he seen Sollux look so… desolate. 

“Shit, I…” Karkat ran a nervous hand through his hair, brows furrowed. “I’m sorry, man.” Sollux chuckled weakly again, this time a bitter flavor rolling around in his mouth as he began to speak. 

“Tho who knowth if I’ll ever get my lithenthe back, or drive, or even be able to walk up and down thtairth?” He glowered at the far wall, turning his anger to an inanimate object instead of the object of his affections. “There goeth my shot at being a normal fucking human being,” Sollux muttered.

“Sollux.” Karkat gripped his shoulder with a firm grasp, concern filling his eyes; reluctantly, the man turned to look him in the eye, anger slipping away from him. “You’re a badass. You’ll bounce right back like your ass was made of rubber and you’ll go back to your normal life when you get out of here. The only reason I know that is because you’re one of the most stubborn dickweeds I know, and I’m pretty damn sure you’re not gonna let this fuck everything up for you.” He smiled weakly, giving his shoulder a squeeze. “Va a estar bien. Te lo prometo.” 

All of the swelling frustration escaped Sollux, and all he could do was slump in his bed and stare hard at his lap. 

“… I really fucking hope tho.” He turned his gaze to the window. “I can’t wait to get out of thith fucking plathe.”

~

“Tho doc! I thigned all my paperth and thtuff. You take thethe thtitcheth out and I’m free to go, right?” Sollux was doing his best not to bounce up and down in his seat, excitement obviously plastered all over his face. Karkat stood in the back of the room, arms folded across his chest and expression caught between concern and amusement; he’d spent the last month in and out of the hospital visiting Sollux as he recovered, providing him with things like his laptop, magazines, and, most importantly, junk food. 

The doctor smiled at Sollux, nodding. 

“You make it sound as though you’ve been kept prisoner here. Haha!” He laughed a little too hard at his own joke; Karkat cringed. “But yes, once I’m done here you’ll be free to gather your things and leave. “

“Fuckin’ thweet,” Sollux tried to resist the urge to fit pump the air. He failed miserably. 

“Alright, sit still please. This will take just a moment…” Immediately the doctor set to work on snipping and tugging on the bandages until they were sliced enough to fall loose; the wrap around his head came off first, followed quickly by a thick padding of gauze. Beneath it, layer after layer of gauze and tape covered Sollux’s eye; the doctor worked slowly but diligently, removing it bit by bit. 

The various other cuts on Sollux’s face had healed for the most part, leaving either shrinking scabs or small pink scars; the doctor had offered him a prescription scar healing ointment, but Sollux declined. He felt as though it would serve as a good reminder not to be a dumbass, really. That, and they looked pretty damn bad ass. 

Finally, the doctor removed the last of the bandages covering what remained of Sollux’s eye. Karkat’s stomach did flips at the sight, even if he’d seen it so many times before.  
A single, jagged gash on the right side began just above his eyebrow, stopping just below his eye; a second moved in the other direction, beginning under his eyebrow and stopping at his cheek. The two slashes came together to make a small ‘x’ just below his eye. A third was on his temple, diagonal and travelling back towards his ear. 

The doctor began to meticulously remove each stitch, one at a time, starting with his temple; he stepped in the way of Karkat’s view, obstructing his window to witness the occasion. Yet, for some reason, Karkat found himself not entirely disappointed. 

Quite a few minutes passed before the doctor took a step back with a smile, admiring his handiwork. 

“Well, Mr. Captor, I’d say everything healed rather nicely. Go ahead, blink a couple times. It will probably feel rather strange to you at first, but you’ll adjust soon enough…” 

Sollux cracked his eye. He then blinked, once, twice, three times, four. Eventually he worked up the concentration to open his eye all the way. 

The green of his irises had faded to a muddied colour, somewhere between withered viridian and mellow jade. A slash crossed through one edge, obviously where tissue had been torn; it was a pale, weak grey, streaked with white and a pallid blue. His pupil was a ghostly grey, flecks and streaks of darker greys and weaker whites mingling in the center.  
Sollux’s head swiveled and he grinned at Karkat. 

The young man found his friend’s new appearance strange, but beautiful in its own weird way. 

“Ready to go, doofus?” Karkat took a step forward, unfolding his arms and shoving his hands in his pockets. 

“Hell to the yeth.” Sollux practically jumped up out of his seat, moving to shake the doctor’s hand. “Thankth a lot for thith—for everything, I mean . Thee ya doc!” 

The two bolted out the door long before the doctor could even process a reply.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't feel like having my editor look at this because I am impatient so here have a rough, uncleaned version


	4. Oh no

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **WARNING!! THERE IS RAPE/NON CON IN THIS CHAPTER!! PROCEED WITH CAUTION!!**

“Hey, KK.” Sollux sat up from where he’d been sprawled across his couch, clothed in sweatpants and a fairly simple grey t-shirt. A bright orange Gemini symbol was embroidered onto the bottom right corner of his shirt. He pivoted so that his sock-covered feet hit the floor, knees apart and elbows resting on them; in his hands was his cell phone. He looked rather perturbed.

Karkat glanced back at him, putting his current session of Soul Calibur on pause; he was wearing a similar ensemble, only he wore a plain red pullover sweatshirt and black sweatpants. His feet were bare. Karkat was staying with Captor at the moment, having slept over at his house the night prior since it was the weekend; they’d spent most of the day shooting the shit and chit-chatting in Sollux’s “living room”, occasionally playing video games or watching bits and snippets of TV. Eventually they’d settled on ordering pizza for linner—Sollux’s term for a meal between lunch and dinner—when Sollux received a text. 

“I might have to bail for a little bit. I’ll be back thoon, I promithe, jutht…” Sollux made a face, rubbing a tired hand across the back of his neck.

Karkat groaned. 

“Which fuck nugget is stirring up shit this time?” he huffed, setting the controller aside. Sollux gave him a rather grim look.

“Gueth.” 

“Ugh. The fuck does fish dick want now?” Karkat flopped down on the couch beside the man, doing his best to peer over his shoulder and get a glimpse of the conversation between the two. Sollux tilted his phone so his friend could have a better view. 

‘sol’

‘sol imn reaalsy fyckin wwatsed soll an shiot iunno wwhere i am’

‘am i at homeee fruick i dnunodo’

‘slo helpl’

‘plese’

Sollux again made a face, glancing at the blond beside him. 

“You see the general trending pattern here,” he muttered, opening a new text. 

‘alriight alriight. where are you now? are you at home or at a party or what?’ 

“I can’t believe I’m doing thith,” Sollux half growled, rising to his feet and beginning to search the apartment for his house keys. He’d gotten a lot worse about keeping track of them since he’d lost his license and his car had been totaled. Who knew having a car would help you maintain access to your house. 

Karkat shot him a wary look.

“You don’t have to go, you know. That douche canoe is undoubtedly passed out in some stranger’s bathtub, and it’s pretty much a given that he’ll find his way home one way or a-fucking-nother.” He bit his lower lip; how the hell are you supposed to word something like this? ‘Don’t go because that guy’s an ass hole that just wants to make out with you, where as I am a milder ass hole that wants to make out with you more’. That was just… shallow. Fuck. He was being shallow. Karkat made a point of mentally smacking himself up the head; what kind of a dude was he turning into.

Sollux shrugged. 

“I may not have to, yeah, but the dumbath ith going to get himthelf into more trouble that he’th worth if we leave him alone.” He scratched the back of his head, sighing. “Might ath well try to find him… You want to tag along or thtay here?” 

Karkat waved a hand at him absentmindedly, choosing to instead return to his game of Soul Caliber. Who knew playing as Kilik against Voldo could be such an interesting activity. 

“I’ll just stay here. No sense in me getting wrapped up in that drama queen’s bullshit.”

“Fair enough. I thertainly don’t blame you…” Sollux scoffs. He then jabs a thumb in the direction of the kitchen. “You know where the food ith and shit. If you get hungry, help yourthelf, mmkay?” He didn’t get a response; he frowned. “If I find fish dick I’ll take him home and then head back here. Thee you in a little bit…?” Still nothing. Sollux huffed. So now KK was giving him the silent treatment for being the only person willing to deal with Eridan’s bull shit. Fine, whatever, he would deal. 

Sollux left without waiting for a further response. Karkat set the controller aside, staring hard at the floor. 

“Don’t leave to deal with that fuck weed,” he muttered softly. “He isn’t worth that kind of trouble, dumbass.” A soft silence settled in, broken by the low hum of background music; finally Karkat returned to his game. Time to kick some slithery, bandage-wrapped, hissing freakazoid ass. 

\-------

“Open up fish dick, I brought ginger ale.” 

“I had to walk here.”

“I will cathtrate you with an erather.”

“Are you dead?”

“Dude. ED. Open the fucking door.”

Sollux sighed, running a hand through his hair. Of all the people to have to baby sit…  
He knocked on the door one, two, three, four times, impatiently tapping his foot on the cement slab of a front porch; for an expensive as hell, fancy-schmancy dorm at such an upstanding university, the parking lot was in pretty bad shape and the front porch could be in better condition, that much was pretty obvious. He grimaced at a rather poorly spray painted penis that was on the ground towards the end of the hall. 

Thud. Thump thump ba-bump THUD.

“Nnngh.”

Oh, shit. 

“ED?” Sollux placed a nervous hand on the door handle, jiggling it. If the idiot had gone and cracked his skull on the stairs or something just as stupid…

The door suddenly swung open, promptly colliding with Sollux’s forehead. 

“Augh, fucking shit ED—“ Sollux yelped, stumbling back and cradling his forehead; a thin line of scarlet dripped from the small nick that now donned his temple, smudging his fingertips with red. He looked up to level the man with a scowl only for it to falter. Eridan clung to the door, pale, eyes wide and stricken with momentary horror. 

“Oh God Sol yer fuckin’—“ he stammers, letting go of the handle long enough to stumble into Sollux’s arms, thus knocking all he’d been carrying to the ground. The man tumbled forward, causing the taller to trip over his own feet. The two collapsed against the railing with an ‘oof’; Sollux’s arms were loosely wrapped around Eridan’s torso while the heavily inebriated man leaned into him, nothing more than dead weight. Bleary eyed and flushed in the face, Eridan gathered enough of his wits to look Sollux in the eyes, caught between looking concerned and looking rather ill. Sollux had half a mind to throw him over the railing then and there and leave it at that. 

“Are ya—y’okay? Didn’ hurt ya or nuffin’?” Eridan blurts. 

Groan. 

“No, I’m totally not bleeding and that didn’t hurt in the thlightetht,” Sollux muttered, worming out from under the drunk enough to right himself; he then grabbed the man by the elbows and hoisted him to his feet. Once assured Eridan was steady enough he wouldn’t spontaneously topple over, Sollux set to work gathering his things from the ground. He was then at the man’s side again, taking his arm and cautiously guiding him back into his dorm. 

“Eathy, eathy… You throw up on me and I’ll kick you out for the retht of the day,” Sollux grunted, though most of the bite is missing in his words. He led the man to his couch, helping him to settle in amongst the plethora of blanch, silken pillows and cushions until he was comfortable enough not to feel immediately ill. As soon as Eridan was settled, he made his way back outside, gathering the selection of items he’d brought with him that had been so unceremoniously knocked from his grasp when Eridan lunged at him; these things were quickly brought inside and set on the kitchen counter. Sure enough, an empty bottle of some sort of imported wine was on the counter, tipped on its side and belly emptied of the sweet nectar it once guarded. 

“Did you drink thith entire thing by yourthelf?” he muttered incredulously. Shaking his head, Sollux set about placing what all he had brought with him on the counter, trying to make heads or tails of it all. One bottle of ginger ale, one liter; one bottle of Tums; one package of saltine crackers; one half dozen of eggs (though half of them were cracked now); and an extra t-shirt, due to the fact that Sollux was suspecting he’d be needing one by the end of this escapade.

“Mnnghf. Sol. Sol help my insides’re gonna—“ Eridan lurched; Sollux grimaced. 

“Okay, no, I am not cleaning puke out of your carpet, that ith dithguthting,” Sollux called out to him as he snatched the garbage can from the kitchen. He made a mad dash for the living room and thrust it in front of the man just in time for him to hurl violet purple chunks; the look on Sollux’s face can only be described as horrified. “Oh deliciouth. Fuck, ED. Why did you do thith…?” he huffed, sitting down beside the man. Eridan groggily raised his head, squinting at the lankier fellow beside him, 

“Fuckin’… Fef broke up wiff me.” Sollux blinked. 

“Oh. Damn, that uh… thuckth? Thorry I gueth.” 

“Nnngh…” The man devolved into a puddle of puke and sobbing rather quickly; Sollux, ever the dutiful “friend”, stayed by his side, offering all the awkward back pats he could. 

A little under an hour passed with Eridan keeping his head in the garbage can. Sollux would get up, get him a glass of ginger ale, sit back down. Get up, fetch a pack of saltines, sit back down. Get up, grab some blankets from some obscure location (seriously, who keeps blankets in a bathroom closet), sit back down. Eventually the man settled down enough to be able to walk on his own, which Sollux was immensely grateful for; exhausted, the brunet settled back onto the sofa, warily observing the purple-streaked-princess hobble about his dorm. Sollux closed his mismatched eyes, listening to the sounds of a drunkenly ill man; he heard water running, he heard splashing in the sink, he heard footsteps stomping about on tile and carpet and linoleum. Eventually his moment of rest was disturbed; suddenly, a body deposited itself next to him, heaving a painfully over-dramatic sigh. Well, he seemed to be feeling better already. 

“Why’re you still here?” Eridan mumbles. Sollux’s eyes snapped open and he whipped around, eyebrow raised, incredulous. 

“Excuthe me? I drag my ath all the way out here to help your thorry fuckwit thelf and you athk why I’m thtill here? Gee, yeah sure ED, helping out wathn’t a problem at all, you’re tho fucking welcome,” he hissed, malice dripping from his words. 

Eridan visibly cringed, his expression mirroring that of a kicked puppy. 

“I fuckin’ meant why did you stick around when you’re probably fed up with all of this?” he murmured, brow furrowing and shoulders hunching. The fiery gusto in Sollux was swiftly extinguished. 

“Oh.” 

“But if you’re gonna be an ass about it, well by all means, I’m not fuckin’ keepin’ you here,” Eridan spat. 

“Shit, no, thorry ED, I didn’t—“ He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “Thorry. I just athumed you… yeah.” 

“Whatever.” Eridan sighed in turn, defensive posture slipping away as he slumped against the couch cushion, re-nestling himself in his obnoxiously purple blanket that he had forced Sollux to fetch earlier. 

“… You want me to leave?” Sollux murmured, just barely audible. The man shook his head once, finally turning to look him in the eye. 

“Not really.” An awkward silence followed.

Eventually, a hand clad in tacky gold rings adorned with equally tacky violet gems inched across the couch; it darted forward, capturing Sollux’s bony fingers in its own. Sollux didn’t bother to fight it. Whatever. If it comforted him then fine—he just couldn’t bring himself to much care about Eridan’s weird fluctuating infatuations any more. 

“You really messed up your eye, huh,” Eridan mumbled, avoiding Sollux’s gaze; the brunet haired man huffed something along the lines of a ‘yeah’. “Mm. Sol, I… No, fuck, never mind. It’s stupid, I’m stupid, nev-ver mind—“ 

Oh great, now he was upset over something. Sollux was beginning to question if he could seriously deal with all this emotional drama bullshit from a vexatious man such as Eridan. 

“Just get it over with already,” he interjects, “or else you’ll thit and futh over it for a forever and a fucking half and I don’t have the patienthe for that kind of shit.” Eridan glanced at him, wide eyed. He swallowed. He sighed. 

“I think I like you. A lot.” Sollux sighed, closing his eyes and rubbing his face with a weary hand. 

“I know.”

“… And?”

“And what, ED? Do you expect me to do thomething? I’m kind of, you know…”

“Completely uninterested, no its okay, I get it, it w-was stupid o’ me an’ I shouldn’t hav-ve brought it—“

“Eridan.” Sollux leveled him with a glare; the man’s mouth snapped shut. “That’th not it, okay? I’m jutht.. fuck if I know. Unsure, I gueth. Or thomething.” 

‘I’m just madly in love with Karkat’ is what he’d like to say—what he needs to say, the clear the air and get all of this bullshit settled and done with, but… Damn it, why did this all have to get so complicated. 

“W-what if I try to… w-what if I help you make up your mind?” Eridan whispered. Sollux cringed at the sound of desperation in his voice; no, fuck, leading him on is most definitely not something he wanted to mmphmph--?!

Sollux’s thoughts were promptly derailed as he snapped back to reality. At some point, Eridan had inched over closer, and closer, and closer still, until he was practically in the man’s lap; then, with about as much grace as an oncoming train moving at about seventy two miles per hour, Eridan’s lips crashed down over Sollux’s. 

What. What no stop Eridan this isn’t what was supposed to—

“Mmnh,” Sollux breathed, eyes fluttering closed for a split second. He quickly snapped back, wide eyed and panicked, as he pressed against Eridan’s chest, trying to force him back. Eventually the kiss is broken, leaving Sollux gasping for air. 

“ED, wait, no, this ithn’t—fuck you’re thtill drunk you aren’t lithtening to me are you—“ His sentence is cut off with another forceful kiss. Eridan’s arms moved upwards, hands resting on either side of Sollux’s head; one of his legs wedged itself between Sollux’s legs and the man gasped, eyes fluttering closed again. He could just barely taste the bile past the minty freshness of toothpaste and mouthwash, and suddenly the panic and nausea of the situation hit him full force. 

Sollux jerkily pushed the man back, forcefully breaking the kiss. 

“ED—Eridan, no, thtop, thith ithn’t what—ithn’t what I meant, okay?” he panted, something similar to fear flashing in his eyes. 

“Sol.. Sol, I love you, fuck—“ 

“No you don’t, you’re jutht drunk, now get off of me pleathe—“ 

Another suffocating kiss. Sollux almost wished he hadn’t turned down those offers to go to the gym with Vriska and Equius after all. 

His arms pressed against Eridan’s chest feebly, the flame of resistance slowly being smothered. Sollux relented to the kiss, hands coming to rest on Eridan’s hips; the man groaned into his mouth, rubbing his thigh between his legs, and Sollux responded with a silent shudder. 

Why was he playing along with this. He didn’t want it, he didn’t want anything to do with Eridan, he was stupid and irritating and obnoxious and besides he loved Karkat, not this bothersome, whiny, self centered, kind of adorable, attractive, sweet, entertaining… guy. 

Wait. Shit. 

Sollux felt disgusted with himself, squeezing his eyes shut as he let the man have his way; reluctantly his lips parted, and Eridan’s tongue dashed between them, grazing his teeth and flicking against Sollux’s own. 

It was because a part of him did want this. Some tiny fraction of his person wanted Eridan, and it was getting what it wanted, so, logically, why stop a good thing from happening? 

Sollux began to wonder if the taste of bile was coming from Eridan’s mouth or his own. 

Eridan’s hands slipped up to Sollux’s chest, groping blindly until one found his nipple; it rubbed and pinched and squeezed, lulling a myriad of lewd noises from the man’s mouth only for them to be swallowed down by the kiss. Sollux was trembling now, adrenaline from panic and pleasure alike flooding his system; shakily he tried to press a hand to Eridan’s chest again to try and force the man to stop. Abruptly, one of Eridan’s hands was cupping him through his jeans, causing him to tear his lips away and cry out a shuddering moan. Eridan was doing this thing with his hands, this wonderfully horrible thing, rolling his fingers while rubbing the butt of his palm up against him and God it felt fucking amazing—

“Nnnh…” A humiliated flush filled Sollux’s cheeks and he looked away, his erection bringing him equal parts shame and pleasure. Eridan grinned, hazy, lustful eyes glancing down to take in an eyeful of Sollux; he drummed his fingers against the tip and the man’s hips jerked into the touch, electrifying sensations shooting up his spine. A gasp caught in his choke, trailing off into a faint, breathy moan. Eridan’s chest pressed down atop him, and Sollux’s rose to meet it, albeit unwillingly. 

“Don’t worry Sol, I promise… it’ll feel fuckin’ amazin’, just wait, I’ll show you how much I love you…” Eridan whispered, ducking his head to rest just beside Sollux’s ear. Another flash of panic struck him, and again, Sollux tried in vain to break free. 

“ED, that’th not it—pleathe, pleathe no, I’m not—I don’t even know if I like you like tha-ahhh!” His words were silenced by his own breathless moan. 

Reality melted into a pleasure-hazed blur, phasing out for just a few moments; as soon as Sollux’s foggy mind resurfaced, he discovered his pants were undone and shoved down to his thighs. A sinking, pitfall feeling stirred in his chest, and he wriggled and writhed, trying his hardest to thrash free. Eridan’s lips crashed down over his again, one hand resting by Sollux’s head as it supported the man; the other flew south, undoing his own jeans and jerkily forcing them down. 

Suddenly the man was upon him again, both legs between Sollux’s now, making it impossible to just close them and keep him from going any further; Eridan ground into him, a rough and lusting action. Sollux gasped, moaned, hips rolling up into him despite his mind trying to urge him otherwise. No. No no no he shouldn’t want this, it’s wrong and it’s not what he’s supposed to like and he shouldn’t be—he shouldn’t be enjoying himself like he is. But he is.  
Eridan’s lips captured Sollux’s again in a fierce, passionate kiss. A choked moan caught in Sollux’s throat, threatening to become a sob. 

No. No, please no.

Boxers were tugged from their places on their hips, hard, throbbing cocks pressing against each other. 

Sollux’s hips bucked into him again and again, wrists pinned above his head by one of Eridan’s hands. The other was wrapped loosely around their lengths, pumping them sporadically, failing to establish any sort of rhythm. Every so often, Eridan would rub his thumb against their tips, smearing precum along their lengths and causing a warbling moan to rip from Sollux’s lips. 

Sollux came first, panting and moaning as hot, sticky cum spurted against his hand and their stomachs alike. Trembling and breathless, a fuzzy white static settled into his mind, claiming his senses for a few long moments. Then, he felt the man above him shift and shudder; willing his eyes to open, he glanced down, and he really, honestly wished he hadn’t. Eridan pressed his tip against Sollux’s entrance just in time for the man to cry out, arms thrashing as he tried to break free. His tip pushed inside, a sudden, tight pain causing Sollux’s hips to jerk. He winced, eyes squeezing shut and tears threatening to well; he started hyperventilating, whispering pleas to let him go, to stop, to just wait a minute and let him breathe—

Eridan pushed in halfway up his cock, the cum making for a rather piss poor make-shift lubricant. Sollux cried out again, the pain worsening with each little movement, every involuntary jerk of his hips. 

“Shhh sh sh, just relax Sol, I know it hurts but in a minnit it’ll feel amazin’, I promise…” Eridan cooed, hand moving towards the man’s face. Sollux flinched as his thumb brushed over his cheek, still sticky with cum as it smeared across his face. The brunet bit back a whimper, squeezing his eyes shut again and begging silently for this to just stop. 

Eridan eased in the rest of the way, all the way to the base, and he let loose a shuddering moan. Sollux was in pain, genuine pain, and he was having a harder time trying to keep from hyperventilating now. The man’s thrusts were slow at first, gentle and shallow; then, he hastened the pace, bucking into him at an uneven pace.

Sollux cried out again and again, though not from pleasure; alas, his cries fell on deaf ears, Eridan’s inebriated self willing him not to hear what was being said. 

Finally the man came inside him, thrusting in all the way at the last moment. Sollux arched his back, a wordless scream torn from his lips; it trailed off into a desperate whimper, tears streaking his cheeks. Eridan promptly collapsed atop the man, exhausted and content. His pleasure-hazed, heavily inebriated mind was more than ready for slumber, and he drifted into a heavy, dreamless sleep swiftly. 

When Sollux realized his hands were no longer bound by the man’s athletic grip, he yanked them free. Then, he summoned all of his strength to lift the man enough to pull himself forward, off of his dick; he could feel the cum slipping between his legs and it made him feel nauseated. He then wriggled his way out from under him, rolling off the couch and onto the floor; Eridan never stirred. 

He gathered his clothes quickly, then ran to the bathroom. Fuck the prick’s fancy towels, he was going to clean himself up and that was fucking that. Hot water and body wash felt good, God it felt great, as though he were scrubbing away the act itself. 

The act. 

When was he going to face what that was? 

Sollux could feel an illness stirring in his gut and he shook the thought from his mind. Not now, that’s for sure—maybe not ever. 

Three Egyptian cotton towels later, Sollux was dressed and headed for the door; briefly he glanced at the things he’d brought with him. No, that stuff didn’t matter. He didn’t care if he left it for the man. 

Sollux then turned to look at Eridan, still passed out face down on the couch. 

He felt a horrid knot in his gut and a painful lump in his throat form; that pitfall feeling in his chest returned, and it was then that it dawned on him.

Fear. He felt fear. 

Sollux swallowed down his sudden insecurities and made a mad dash for the door. He made a point of locking the door handle before leaving. 

He whipped out his phone. Three new texts. 

‘DID THE ASSMUNCH MANAGE TO BASH HIS HEAD AGAINST THE KITCHEN COUNTER?’

‘EARTH TO CAPTOR. WERE YOU CAPTURED AND MINCED INTO SOME FANCY FRENCH-IRISH PASTA DISH CRAFTED BY THE EVIL MASTERMIND FISH DICK?’

‘YOU COMING HOME TONIGHT OR SHOULD I BAIL?’

Sollux sighed, mashing a quick reply. 

‘no, he2 fiine. iim headed back now. ‘

It was barely a minute before he received a reply. 

‘ALRIGHT THEN. DID HE THROW UP ON YOU? OR WERE YOU TWO TOO BUSY MACKING ON EACH OTHER TO ANSWER MY TEXTS?’

Sollux felt a sudden rush of nausea, of fear, stir within his gut and cause his hands to tremble. 

‘no, he diidnt. 2ee you iin thiirty.’

Sollux snapped his phone shut and forced it into his pocket. 

Never before had he felt so violated, so wronged, so… conflicted. 

The man shivered against the autumn-turning-winter wind and bowed his head, staring hard at the ground as he began the trek home. He had a lot of thinking to do.


End file.
